PPG Industries (PPG) 10-K2023 FY Annual report

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023

Commission File Number 1-1687

Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):

Part I

Item 1. Business

PPG Industries, Inc. manufactures and distributes a broad range of paints, coatings and specialty materials. PPG was incorporated in Pennsylvania in 1883. PPG’s vision is to be the first-choice partner to meet our customers’ evolving needs for innovative paints, coatings and surface solutions to protect and beautify the world.

 

PPG has a proud heritage with a demonstrated commitment to innovation, sustainability, community engagement and development of leading-edge paint, coatings and specialty materials technologies. Through dedication and industry-leading expertise, we solve our customers’ biggest challenges, collaborating closely to find the right path forward. PPG is a global leader with manufacturing facilities and equity affiliates in more than 70 countries.

PPG supplies paints, coatings and specialty materials to customers serving a wide array of end-uses, including industrial equipment and components; packaging material; aircraft and marine equipment; automotive original equipment; automotive refinish and aftermarket; pavement marking products; as well as coatings for other industrial and consumer products. PPG also serves commercial and residential new build and maintenance customers by supplying coatings to painting and maintenance contractors and directly to consumers for decoration and maintenance.

The coatings industry is highly competitive and consists of several large firms with global presence and many firms supplying local or regional markets. PPG competes in its primary markets with the world’s largest coatings companies, most of which have global operations, and with many regional coatings companies.

PPG’s business is comprised of two reportable business segments: Performance Coatings and Industrial Coatings as described below:

PERFORMANCE COATINGS

INDUSTRIAL COATINGS

(a) Original equipment manufacturer (OEM)

Technology innovation has been a hallmark of PPG’s success throughout its history. The Company seeks to optimize its investment in research and development to create new products to drive profitable growth. We align our product development with the macro trends in the markets we serve, including a focus on sustainability and productivity, and leverage core technology platforms to develop products to address unmet market needs. Additionally, we operate laboratories in close geographic proximity to our customers, and we customize our products for our customers' end-use applications. Our history of successful technology introductions is based on a commitment to an efficient and effective innovation process and disciplined portfolio management. We have obtained government funding for a small portion of the Company’s research efforts, and we will continue to pursue government funding, where appropriate.

We own and operate several facilities to conduct research and development for new and improved products and processes. In addition to the Company’s centralized principal research and development centers (see Item 2. “Properties” of this Form 10-K), operating segments manage their development through centers of excellence. As part of our ongoing efforts to manage our formulations and raw material costs effectively, we operate global competitive sourcing laboratories. Because of our broad array of products and customers, we are not materially dependent upon any single technology platform.

PPG uses a wide variety of complex raw materials that serve as the building blocks of our manufactured products. The Company’s most significant raw materials include resins, reactants, solvents, titanium dioxide, epoxy and emulsions. Raw materials include both organic, primarily petroleum-derived, materials and inorganic materials, including titanium dioxide. Raw materials represent PPG’s single largest production cost component.

Most of the raw materials and energy used in production are purchased from outside sources, and the Company has made, and continues to make, supply arrangements to meet our planned operating requirements for the future. Supply of critical raw materials and energy is managed by establishing contracts with multiple sources and identifying alternative materials or technology whenever possible. In support of our decarbonization efforts, we are increasing the amount of renewable energy secured for our operating facilities and increasingly evaluating alternative raw materials that offer sustainable benefits and support the circular economy, including recycled and renewable feedstocks. Prices for certain of our raw materials typically fluctuate with energy prices and global supply and demand changes; however, pricing may be impacted by the fact that the manufacture of our raw materials is several steps downstream from crude oil, natural gas, and other key feedstocks.

Through effective management of raw materials, energy and logistics, the Company aims to maintain a competitive cost position and ensure ongoing security of supply. Security of a sufficient supply of high-quality raw materials is important to PPG’s continued success as it allows the Company to increase production as necessary to keep pace with customer demand. While PPG faced certain raw material shortages and logistical challenges during 2022, raw material and logistics availability continued to improve throughout 2023 and is now comparable to pre-pandemic conditions. We continue to focus on improving our competitive cost position and expanding our supply of high-quality raw materials, including strategic initiatives to qualify multiple sources of supply.

We typically experience fluctuating prices for energy and raw materials driven by various factors, including changes in supplier feedstock costs and inventories, global industry activity levels, foreign currency exchange rates, government regulation, and global supply and demand factors. In 2023 raw material costs remained high compared to historic levels, but moderated compared to 2022 levels, resulting in a decrease to our operating costs of more than $500 million. Given the uncertainty associated with the various factors that drive raw material prices, we are not able to predict the 2024 full-year impact of changes in raw material costs versus 2023; however, we do not currently expect to incur significant raw material inflation during 2024. While raw material costs declined during 2023, the Company continues to incur wage inflation, and anticipates further wage inflation impacts in 2024.

We are subject to existing and evolving standards relating to the regulation and registration of chemicals which could potentially impact the availability and viability of some of the raw materials we use in our production processes. Our ongoing, global product stewardship efforts are directed at maintaining our compliance with these standards. We anticipate that the number of chemical registration regulations will continue to increase globally, and we have implemented programs to track and comply with these regulations.

Our commitment to sustainability extends to our suppliers as an extension of our internal focus on sustainability. The PPG Global Supplier Code of Conduct clarifies our global expectations in the areas of business integrity, labor practices,

associate health and safety, and environmental management. Our Supplier Sustainability Policy builds upon our Global Supplier Code of Conduct by establishing expectations for sustainability within our supply chain. This policy reinforces our expectations that our suppliers, as well as their subcontractors, will comply fully with applicable laws and adhere to internationally recognized environmental, social and corporate-governance standards.

PPG has significant non-U.S. operations. This broad geographic footprint serves to lessen the significance to us of economic impacts occurring in any one region of the world. As a result of our global footprint, we are subject to certain inherent risks, including economic and political conditions in international markets, trade protection measures and fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. During 2023, favorable foreign currency translation increased Net sales by approximately $102 million and Income before income taxes by approximately $25 million.

Refer to Note 20, “Revenue Recognition” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K for additional geographic information pertaining to sales and Note 21, “Reportable Business Segment Information” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K for geographic information related to PPG’s property, plant and equipment.

PPG’s Income before income taxes has typically been greater in the second and third quarters and Cash from operating activities has been greatest in the fourth quarter due to end-use market seasonality, primarily in our architectural coatings and traffic solutions businesses. Demand for our architectural coatings and traffic solutions products is typically the strongest in the second and third quarters due to higher home improvement, maintenance and construction activity during the spring and summer months in the U.S., Canada and Europe. The Latin American paint season is the strongest in the fourth quarter. These cyclical activity levels result in the collection of outstanding receivables and lower inventory on hand in the fourth quarter generating higher Cash from operating activities.

The average number of people employed by PPG during 2023 was approximately 53,000, of which approximately 16,300 were in the United States and approximately 36,700 were elsewhere in the world. The Company has numerous collective bargaining agreements throughout the world. We observe local customs, laws and practices in labor relations when negotiating collective bargaining agreements. There were no significant work stoppages in 2023. While we have experienced occasional work stoppages and may experience some work stoppages in the future, we believe that we will be able to negotiate all labor agreements on satisfactory terms. To date, these work stoppages have not had a significant impact on our results of operations. Overall, we believe we have good relationships with our employees.

The PPG Way is a set of behaviors that enables, empowers and engages each employee to fully live our values and realize our full potential as an organization. It guides our employees and leaders as we strive to achieve our purpose of protecting and beautifying the world. Employee engagement is a measure of the extent to which our employees are involved in, enthusiastic about, and committed to our work and workplace. We conduct employee surveys to increase dialogue among teams and implement meaningful action to improve results.

Our human capital management strategies provide the foundation for our teams to thrive and deliver exceptional performance. These strategies in the areas of culture and purpose, employee engagement, development and pay equity are overseen by the Human Capital Management and Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors. We are committed to ensuring our employees are safe, healthy, enabled, engaged and valued for the diverse talents they bring to PPG. We believe that having quality dialogue with our people, recognizing the value they bring and championing an authentic culture generates engaged employees and a company that is more innovative, productive and competitive. Our focus on and investment in learning and development are crucial to ensuring we keep our people engaged, productive and successful at every stage of their careers. We are committed to promoting from within wherever possible while also bringing in new ideas, thoughts and insights.

Our environmental, health and safety policy and standards define our expectations, and we implement programs and initiatives to reduce health and safety risk in our operations. We measure progress against our health and safety goals using the injury and illness rate, which is calculated as the number of illness and injury incidents per 200,000 work hours. For 2023, our injury and illness rate was 0.32.

One of PPG’s greatest strengths is the diversity of our people, who represent wide-ranging nationalities, cultures, languages, religions, ethnicities, and professional and educational backgrounds. Their unique perspectives enable us to meet challenges quickly, creatively and effectively, providing a significant competitive advantage in today’s global economy. To ensure our people feel valued and respected, we are committed to providing a workplace that embraces a culture of diversity and inclusion and is free from harassment and bullying. In connection with our focus on diversity, equity and inclusion, PPG operates eight Employee Resource Networks (“ERNs”). These ERNs are open to all employees and are intended to provide an opportunity for in-depth discussion, focus and recommendations on how PPG can deliver higher growth and performance by creating a more diverse, equitable and inclusive organization.

More information about PPG’s human capital management strategies and our workforce can be found in the Proxy Statement for our 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders and in our ESG Report located at http://sustainability.ppg.com.

PPG is committed to operating in a sustainable and productive manner and to helping our customers meet their sustainability goals. Our sustainability efforts are overseen by the Sustainability and Innovation Committee of our Board of Directors. At the management level, day-to-day implementation of our environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) initiatives is led by our Vice President, Global Sustainability, who is responsible for coordinating PPG’s ESG and sustainability programs and for communicating our ESG progress with our customers, shareholders and other stakeholders. The Vice President, Global Sustainability works with PPG’s Sustainability Committee, a committee of management consisting of senior corporate executives, to establish and monitor our sustainability goals, policies, programs and procedures that incorporate sustainability into our business practices, including resource management, climate change impacts, innovation, community engagement, communications, procurement, manufacturing and employee wellness.

Our dedication to innovation is intertwined with sustainability. We are marketing an ever-growing variety of products and services that protect the environment and provide safety and other benefits to our customers. Our products contribute to lighter, more fuel-efficient vehicles, airplanes and ships, and they help our customers reduce their energy consumption, conserve water and reduce waste. These products include compact automotive paint processes and low temperature cure capabilities that save energy and reduce water usage at customer manufacturing sites; sustainably-advantaged waterborne coatings formulations; sustainably-advantaged powder coatings; lightweight sealants and coatings for aircraft; coatings that cool surfaces; coatings for recyclable metal packaging; antimicrobial products; coatings that contain reduced materials of concern; architectural coatings that contain lower carbon content raw materials; silica products for tires that improve vehicle fuel economy; and solutions for autonomous and battery-powered vehicles. For the year ended December 31, 2023, 44% of sales were from sustainably-advantaged products and processes that we have defined as addressing multiple sustainability benefits, including lower emissions, lower toxicity, energy efficiency, use of renewable raw materials or extending durability.

PPG is committed to using resources efficiently and driving sustainability throughout our entire value chain, including continued focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, water withdrawal and total energy use. During 2023, PPG announced its near-term 2030 sustainability goals, including greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions targets that have been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative. PPG’s 2030 sustainability goals include a commitment to reduce absolute emissions from its own operations (scope 1 and 2) by 50% by 2030 from a 2019 base year and to reduce absolute scope 3 GHG emissions from purchased goods and services, processing of sold products, and end-of-life treatment of sold products by 30% within the same timeframe. More information about PPG’s sustainability values, efforts, goals and data and our community and employee engagement programs can be found in our ESG Report located at http://sustainability.ppg.com.

We are subject to existing and evolving standards relating to the protection of the environment. In management’s opinion, the Company operates in an environmentally sound manner and is well positioned, relative to environmental matters, within the industries in which it operates. PPG is negotiating with various government agencies concerning current and former manufacturing sites and offsite waste disposal locations, including certain sites on the National Priority List. While PPG is not generally a major contributor of wastes to these offsite waste disposal locations, each potentially responsible party may face governmental agency assertions of joint and several liability. Generally, however, a final allocation of costs is made based on relative contributions of wastes to the site. There is a wide range of cost estimates for cleanup of these sites, due largely to uncertainties as to the nature and extent of their condition and the methods that may have to be employed for their remediation. The Company has established reserves for onsite and offsite remediation of those sites where it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated.

Our experience to date regarding environmental matters leads us to believe that we will have continuing expenditures for compliance with provisions regulating the protection of the environment and for present and future remediation efforts at waste and plant sites. Management anticipates that such expenditures will occur over an extended period of time.

In addition to the $227 million currently reserved for environmental remediation efforts, we may be subject to loss contingencies related to environmental matters estimated to be approximately $100 million to $200 million. These reasonably possible unreserved losses relate to environmental matters at a number of sites, none of which are individually significant. The loss contingencies related to these sites include significant unresolved issues such as the nature and extent of contamination at these sites and the methods that may have to be employed to remediate them.

We believe that capital expenditures for environmental control projects will be slightly higher in 2024 compared to 2023. Actual future capital expenditures may differ from expectations due to the inherent uncertainties involved in estimating future environmental remediation compliance costs, including possible technological, regulatory and enforcement developments, the results of environmental studies and other factors.

Management believes that the outcome of these environmental contingencies will not have a material adverse effect on PPG’s financial position or liquidity; however, any such outcome may be material to the results of operations of any particular period in which costs, if any, are recognized. Refer to Note 15, “Commitments and Contingent Liabilities” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K for additional information related to environmental matters and our accrued liability for estimated environmental remediation costs.

Item 1A. Risk Factors

As a global manufacturer of paints, coatings and specialty materials, we operate in a business environment that includes risks. Each of the risks described in this section could adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and liquidity. While the factors listed here are considered to be the more significant factors, no such list should be considered to be a complete statement of all potential risks and uncertainties. Unlisted factors may present significant additional obstacles which may adversely affect our businesses and our results of operations, financial position and liquidity.

Economic Risks

Our financial results are significantly affected by the cost of raw materials. Raw materials include both organic, primarily petroleum-derived, materials and inorganic materials, including titanium dioxide. These raw materials represent PPG’s single largest production cost component. Most of our raw materials are purchased from outside sources, and the Company has made, and plans to continue to make, supply arrangements to meet the planned operating requirements for the future. Adequate supply of critical raw materials is managed by establishing contracts, procuring from multiple sources, and identifying alternative materials or technology whenever possible. While not our customary practice, we also import raw materials and intermediates, particularly for use at our manufacturing facilities in the emerging regions of the world. In most cases, those imports are priced in the currency of the supplier and, therefore, if that currency strengthens against the currency of our manufacturing facility, our margins may be lower.

The Company is continuing its aggressive sourcing initiatives to effectively broaden our supply of high quality raw materials. These initiatives include qualifying multiple and local sources of supply, within Asia and other lower cost regions of the world, diversification of our resin supply, including adding on-site resin production at certain manufacturing locations, and a reduction in the amount of titanium dioxide and certain other raw materials used in our product formulations.

Demand for our products and services depends, in part, on the general economic conditions affecting the countries and markets in which we do business. Weak economic conditions in certain geographies and changing supply and demand balances in the markets we serve have negatively impacted demand for our products and services in the past and may do so in the future. There is a high level of uncertainty surrounding future global economic conditions due to a number of factors, including the impact of higher interest rates, geopolitical uncertainty, including the international impacts of the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Israel and increasing tensions between China and the United States, commodity market volatility, potential changes to international trade agreements, the imposition of tariffs and the threat of additional tariffs, and labor shortages in certain regions of the world. PPG provides products and services to a variety of end-use markets in many geographies. This broad end-use market exposure and expanded geographic presence lessens the significance of any individual decrease in activity levels; nonetheless, lower demand levels may result in lower sales, which would adversely impact Income from continuing operations and Cash from operating activities.

We are exposed to foreign currency exchange rate risk with respect to our sales, expenses, profits, assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Because our consolidated financial statements are presented in U.S. dollars, we must translate revenues and expenses into U.S. dollars at the average exchange rate during each reporting period, as well as assets and liabilities into U.S. dollars at exchange rates in effect at the end of each reporting period. Therefore, increases or decreases in the value of the U.S. dollar against other currencies will affect our Net sales, Net income and the value of balance sheet items denominated in foreign currencies. We may use derivative financial instruments to reduce our net exposure to currency exchange rate fluctuations related to foreign currency transactions. However, fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, particularly the strengthening or weakening of the U.S. dollar against major currencies, could adversely or positively affect our financial condition and results of operations which are expressed in U.S. dollars.

The industries in which we operate are highly competitive.

With each of our businesses, an increase in competition may cause us to lose market share or lose customers, adversely impacting our sales volumes, or compel us to reduce prices to remain competitive, which could result in reduced margins for our products. Additionally, our ability to increase prices may impact the overall economics for the products we offer. Competitive pressures may not only reduce our margins but may also impact our revenues and our growth which could adversely affect our results of operations.

Public health crises, including pandemics and the measures taken by public health and government authorities to address them, have adversely impacted and could continue to adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

Our financial condition, liquidity and results of operations were adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, including impacts from efforts by public health officials to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The effects of this public health crisis interfered with the ability of PPG, our suppliers, our customers, and others to conduct business and negatively affected consumer confidence and the global economy. Preventative and protective actions taken by public health officials, governments and PPG with respect to the public health crises have and may continue to adversely impact our business, suppliers, distribution channels, and customers, including business shutdowns, reduced workforce availability, reduced ability to supply products, or reduced demand for our products. While we cannot reasonably predict the duration or scope of current and future public health crises, our results of operations, financial position and liquidity have been and may continue to be adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic or any other future health-related crises.

Legal, Regulatory, and Tax Risks

Environmental laws and regulations control, among other things, the discharge of pollutants into the air and water, the handling, use, treatment, storage and clean-up of hazardous and non-hazardous waste, and the investigation and remediation of soil and groundwater affected by hazardous substances. In addition, various laws regulate health and safety matters. The environmental laws and regulations we are subject to impose liability for the costs of, and damages resulting from, cleaning up current sites, past spills, disposals and other releases of hazardous substances. Violations of these laws and regulations can also result in fines and penalties. Future environmental laws and regulations, including rules requiring expanded reporting of certain environmental, safety and governance information, may require substantial capital expenditures or may require or cause us to modify or curtail our operations, which may have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

PPG is involved in a number of lawsuits and claims, both actual and potential, in which substantial monetary damages are sought. Those lawsuits and claims may relate to contract, patent, environmental, product liability, asbestos exposure, antitrust, employment, securities and other matters arising out of the conduct of PPG’s current and past business activities. Any such claims, whether with or without merit, could be time consuming and expensive to defend and could divert management’s attention and resources. We maintain insurance against some, but not all, of these potential claims, and the levels of insurance we maintain may not be adequate to fully cover any and all losses. We believe that, in the aggregate, the outcome of all current lawsuits and claims involving PPG, including those described in Note 15, “Commitments and Contingent Liabilities” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K, will not have a material effect on PPG’s consolidated financial position or liquidity; however, such outcome may be material to the results of operations of any particular period in which costs, if any, are recognized. Nonetheless, the results of any future litigation or claims are inherently unpredictable, and such outcomes could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, Cash from operating activities or financial condition.

We are subject to a wide variety of complex U.S. and non-U.S. laws and regulations, and legal compliance risks, including securities laws, tax laws, environmental laws, employment and pension-related laws, competition laws, U.S. and foreign export and trading laws, and laws governing improper business practices, including bribery. We are affected by new laws and regulations and changes to existing laws and regulations, as well as interpretations by courts and regulators. These laws and regulations effectively expand our compliance obligations and costs.

For example, regulations concerning the composition, use and transport of chemical products continue to evolve. Developments concerning these regulations could potentially impact the availability or viability of some of the raw materials we use in our product formulations and/or our ability to supply certain products to some customers or markets. Import/export sanctions and regulations also continue to evolve and could result in increased compliance costs, slower product movements or additional complexity in our supply chains.

Further, although we believe that we have appropriate risk management and compliance programs in place, we cannot guarantee that our internal controls and compliance systems will always protect us from improper acts committed by employees, agents, business partners or businesses that we acquire. Any non-compliance or such improper actions or allegations could damage our reputation and subject us to civil or criminal investigations and shareholder lawsuits, could lead to substantial civil and criminal, monetary and non-monetary penalties, and could cause us to incur significant legal and investigatory costs.

As a multinational corporation, we are subject to various taxes in both the U.S. and non-U.S. jurisdictions. Due to economic and political conditions, tax rates in these various jurisdictions may be subject to significant changes. For example, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has proposed modernizing international tax rules, including global minimum tax standards, which could cause an increase to our effective tax rate or result in higher cash tax liabilities. Our effective income tax rate is also affected by changes in the mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates, changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets, the introduction of new taxes and changes in tax laws or their interpretation. If our effective income tax rate were to increase, our Cash from operating activities, financial condition and results of operations would be adversely affected. Although we believe that our tax filing positions are appropriate, the final determination of tax audits or tax disputes may be different from what is reflected in our historical income tax provisions and accruals. If future audits find that additional taxes are due, we may be subject to incremental tax liabilities, possibly including interest and penalties, which could have a material adverse effect on our Cash from operating activities, financial condition and results of operations.

Operational and Strategic Risks

PPG has a significant investment in global operations. This broad geographic footprint serves to lessen the significance of economic impacts occurring in any one region. Notwithstanding the benefits of geographic diversification, our ability to achieve and maintain profitable growth in international markets is subject to risks related to the differing legal, political, social and regulatory requirements and economic conditions of many countries. As a result of our operations outside the U.S., we are subject to certain inherent risks, including political and economic uncertainty, inflation rates, exchange rates, trade protection measures, local labor conditions and laws, restrictions on foreign investments and repatriation of

earnings, and weak intellectual property protection. Recently, there has been an increase in global geopolitical uncertainty due to a number of factors, including the international impacts of the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Israel and increasing tensions between China and the United States. During 2023, approximately 63% of the Company’s total net sales were recognized outside of the United States.

Unexpected events, including supply disruptions, temporary plant and/or power outages, work stoppages, natural disasters and severe weather events, including those potentially due to climate change, significant public health issues, computer system disruptions, challenges implementing, upgrading or transitioning enterprise resource planning systems, fires, war or terrorist activities, could increase the cost of doing business or otherwise harm the operations of PPG, our customers and our suppliers. It is not possible for us to predict the occurrence or consequence of any such events. However, such events could reduce our ability to supply products, reduce demand for our products or make it difficult or impossible for us to receive raw materials from suppliers or to deliver products to customers.

We rely extensively on global information technology systems, networks and services, certain of which are managed, hosted, provided and/or used by third parties or their vendors, to conduct our business. We use information technology systems, networks, and services throughout many of our key business processes, including, but not limited to, receiving customer orders, purchasing materials, producing inventory, shipping inventory to customers, collecting customer payments, and paying our employees and vendors.

Numerous and evolving information security threats, including advanced persistent threats and ransomware, pose a risk to the security of our systems, networks and services, as well as to the confidentiality, availability and integrity of our data and of our critical business operations. In addition, because the techniques, tools and tactics used in cyber-attacks frequently change and may be difficult to detect for periods of time, we may face difficulties in anticipating and implementing adequate preventative measures or fully mitigating harms after such an attack. Our information technology systems, networks and services have been, and will likely continue to be, subject to cybersecurity attacks. We have implemented and operate a cybersecurity program designed to protect and preserve the confidentiality, integrity and availability of our networks and systems as well as information that we own or is in our care. Notwithstanding our cybersecurity preparedness activities, we cannot guarantee that our security efforts or the security efforts of our third-party service providers will prevent all cybersecurity events. A material cybersecurity event could result in negative publicity, theft or other financial loss, modification or destruction of proprietary information or key information, manufacture of defective products, theft of personally identifiable information, and/or production downtimes and operational disruptions, which could adversely affect our results of operations.

Growth through acquisitions is an important component of the Company’s strategy. Over the last decade, we have successfully completed more than 50 acquisitions, and we will likely acquire additional businesses and enter into additional joint ventures in the future. Growth through acquisitions and the formation of joint ventures involve risks, including:

These risks or other challenges encountered in connection with our past or future acquisitions and joint ventures could cause delays in realizing the anticipated benefits of such acquisitions or joint ventures, or such anticipated benefits may never be realized, which could adversely affect our results of operations, Cash from operating activities or financial condition.

Our business relies on continued global demand for our brands and products. To achieve our business goals, we must develop and sell products that appeal to customers. This is dependent on a number of factors, including our ability to produce products that meet the quality, performance and price expectations of our customers and our ability to develop effective sales, advertising and marketing programs.

We believe the automotive industry will experience significant and continued change in the coming years, including an increase in the production of electric vehicles. Vehicle manufacturers continue to develop new safety features such as collision avoidance technology and self-driving vehicles that may reduce vehicle collisions in the future, potentially lowering demand for our automotive refinish coatings. In addition, through the introduction of new technologies, new business models or new methods of travel, such as ridesharing, the number of automotive OEM new-builds may decline, potentially reducing demand for our automotive OEM coatings and related automotive parts.

Additionally, the development of customer-facing digital channels has and will continue to transform certain retail industries. An inability to develop such solutions and our customer’s pace of adoption of those solutions could negatively affect our business or the market demand for our products. We manage our innovation pipeline and introduction of new products through a rigorous stage gate process. We continuously look at ways to optimize and improve the effectiveness of this process to deliver innovation and growth.

Our future growth will depend on our ability to continue to innovate our existing products and to develop and introduce new products. If we fail to keep pace with product innovation on a competitive basis or to predict market demands for our products, our businesses, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.

Our continued business success depends on the efforts and abilities of our management team and employees. The skills, experience and industry knowledge of our employees significantly benefit our operations and performance. We compete with other companies both within and outside of our industry for talented personnel in a highly competitive labor market, and we may face challenges attracting or retaining qualified employees. If we are unable to effectively attract, develop and retain a qualified workforce, our businesses, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.

None.

PPG’s cybersecurity program is designed to protect and preserve the confidentiality, integrity and availability of our networks and systems as well as information that we own or is in our care through a risk-based approach. The Company’s program is based on the U.S. National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) cybersecurity framework and other applicable industry frameworks.

Our cybersecurity program includes:

PPG has continued to invest in cybersecurity to evolve and improve its program. PPG regularly assesses and measures itself against industry practices to identify opportunities to improve its people, processes and technology used to identify, prevent, detect, respond and recover from cybersecurity incidents. When such improvements are identified and validated as appropriate in PPG’s business context, they are incorporated in the roadmap for implementation.

To date, the risks from cybersecurity threats have not materially affected the Company. We have significantly increased our cybersecurity investments over the last five years and have implemented cybersecurity safeguards designed to detect

The PPG Board of Directors (the “Board”) has overall responsibility for the oversight of risk management at PPG, which includes cybersecurity risks. The Audit Committee of the Board (the “Audit Committee”), is responsible for oversight of the Company’s enterprise risk management (“ERM”) program which provides oversight and governance of all of the Company’s operational and financial risks including risks from cybersecurity threats to the Company. The Audit Committee receives bi-annual reports and periodic briefings on cybersecurity matters, including key risks to the Company, recent developments, and risk mitigation activities from our Vice President and Chief Information Officer (“CIO”) and our Chief Information Security Officer (“CISO"), who are both responsible for overseeing our cybersecurity program. In addition, the full Board receives bi-annual briefings from our CIO on our cybersecurity program. The Board and the Audit Committee also periodically review the results of exercises performed by our advisors as part of an independent assessment of PPG’s cybersecurity program and internal preparedness.

In addition, the Enterprise Risk Committee, a committee of senior executives who identify and monitor the risks to PPG and are responsible for our ERM program, receives updated information on cybersecurity risks at each of its meetings.

As part of their oversight of our cybersecurity program, our CIO and our CISO oversee a team of cybersecurity professionals and are responsible for assessing and managing our material risks from cybersecurity threats. Our CIO and CISO are trained information technology professionals, each of whom has earned degrees in information systems and business administration and has many years of experience in or managing global enterprise information technology at various organizations.

PPG maintains an internal communication hierarchy that is designed to communicate the occurrence of certain cybersecurity events and/or incidents into our systems to our CISO, our CIO, our company crisis response team, and, as appropriate, to certain members of senior management. This communication hierarchy includes protocols for informing the Audit Committee and the full Board of certain cybersecurity events and/or incidents and for determining the materiality thereof.

PPG’s corporate headquarters is located in the United States in Pittsburgh, Pa. The Company’s manufacturing facilities, sales offices, research and development centers and distribution centers are located throughout the world. Refer to Item 1. “Business” of this Form 10-K for the principal manufacturing and distribution facilities by reportable business segment.

The Company’s principal research and development centers are located in Allison Park, Pa.; Tianjin, China; Cleveland, Oh.; Springdale, Pa.; Milan, Italy; Monroeville, Pa.; Harmar, Pa.; Ingersheim, Germany; Marly, France; Oak Creek, Wi.; Sumare, Brazil; Amsterdam, Netherlands; Vantaa, Finland; Tepexpan, Mexico; Burbank, Ca.; Zhangjiagang, China; Cheonan, Republic of Korea; Wroclaw, Poland; Bangplee, Thailand; and Sylmar, Ca.

Our headquarters, certain distribution centers and substantially all company-owned paint stores are located in facilities that are leased while our other facilities are generally owned. Our facilities are considered to be suitable and adequate for the purposes for which they are intended and overall have sufficient capacity to conduct business in the upcoming year.

Item 3. Legal Proceedings

PPG is involved in a number of lawsuits and claims, both actual and potential, including some that it has asserted against others, in which substantial monetary damages are sought. These lawsuits and claims may relate to contract, patent, environmental, product liability, asbestos exposure, antitrust, employment, securities and other matters arising out of the conduct of PPG’s current and past business activities. To the extent these lawsuits and claims involve personal injury, property damage and certain other claims, PPG believes it has adequate insurance; however, certain of PPG’s insurers are contesting coverage with respect to some of these claims, and other insurers may contest coverage. PPG’s lawsuits and claims against others include claims against insurers and other third parties with respect to actual and contingent losses related to environmental, asbestos and other matters.

From the late 1880’s until the early 1970’s, PPG owned property located in Cadogan and North Buffalo Townships, Pennsylvania which was used for the disposal of solid waste from PPG’s former glass manufacturing facility in Ford City, Pennsylvania. In October 2018, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (the “DEP”) approved PPG’s cleanup plan for the Cadogan Property. In April 2019, PPG and the DEP entered into a consent order and agreement (“CO&A”) which incorporated PPG’s approved cleanup plan and a draft final permit for the collection and discharge of seeps emanating from the former disposal area. The CO&A includes a civil penalty of $1.2 million for alleged past unauthorized discharges. PPG’s former disposal area is also the subject of a citizens’ suit filed by the Sierra Club and PennEnvironment seeking remedial measures beyond the measures specified in PPG’s approved cleanup plan, a civil penalty in addition to the penalty included in the CO&A and plaintiffs’ attorneys fees. PPG and the plaintiffs settled plaintiffs’ claims for injunctive relief and PPG agreed to enhancements to the DEP approved cleanup plan and a $250,000 donation to a Pennsylvania nonprofit organization. This settlement has been memorialized by an amendment to the CO&A which was appended to a Consent Agreement between PPG and the plaintiffs which has been entered by the federal Court. The remaining claims in the case for attorneys’ fees and a civil penalty are not affected by this settlement. PPG believes that the remaining claims are without merit and intends to defend itself against these claims vigorously.

For many years, PPG has been a defendant in lawsuits involving claims alleging personal injury from exposure to asbestos. For a description of asbestos litigation affecting the Company, see Note 15, “Commitments and Contingent Liabilities” to the accompanying consolidated financial statements in Part I, Item 8 of this Form 10-K.

In the past, the Company and others have been named as defendants in several cases in various jurisdictions claiming damages related to exposure to lead and remediation of lead-based coatings applications. PPG has been dismissed as a defendant from most of these lawsuits and has never been found liable in any of these cases. After having not been named in a new lead-related lawsuit for 15 years, PPG was named as a defendant in two Pennsylvania state court lawsuits filed by Montgomery County and Lehigh County in the respective counties on October 4, 2018 and October 12, 2018. Both suits sought declaratory relief arising out of alleged public nuisances in the counties associated with the presence of lead paint on various buildings constructed prior to 1980. By Opinion and Order dated May 5, 2023, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court reversed rulings of the lower trial courts, unanimously ruling that the Counties failed to plead valid causes of action, and remanding both cases to their respective trial courts for dismissal. On June 5, 2023, the Counties filed Petitions for Allowance of Appeal with the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. On November 20, 2023, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court denied the Counties’ Petitions and, as such, dismissal of the lawsuit is now final.

Set forth below is information related to the Company’s executive officers as of February 15, 2024. 

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures

Not Applicable.

Item 5. Market for the Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

The information required by Item 5 regarding market information, including PPG’s stock exchange listing and quarterly stock market prices, dividends, holders of common stock, and the stock performance graph is included in Exhibit 13.1 filed with this Form 10-K and is incorporated herein by reference.

The following discussion includes a comparison of our results of operations and liquidity and capital resources for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022. A discussion of changes in our results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2022 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2021 has been omitted from this Form 10-K, but may be found in “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” of our 2022 Form 10-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 16, 2023.

Net sales were approximately $18.2 billion in 2023, an increase of 3% compared to the prior year, driven by higher selling prices resulting from continued selling price initiatives. The Company increased net sales led by growth in aerospace coatings and automotive OEM coatings despite lower global industrial production and soft demand conditions in Europe.

Income before income taxes was $1,748 million in 2023, an increase of $367 million compared to the prior year. This increase was primarily due to higher selling prices and lower raw material costs, partially offset by higher selling, general and administrative expense and lower sales volumes.

For specific business results, see the Performance of Reportable Business Segments section within Item 7 of this Form 10-K.

Selling, general and administrative expenses increased $380 million primarily due to:

Interest expense increased $80 million 2023 versus 2022 primarily due to the unfavorable impact of higher interest rates on PPG’s variable rate debt obligations.

Interest income increased $86 million primarily due to strong cash generation, resulting in higher levels of cash and cash equivalents, as well as the favorable impact of higher interest rates.

During 2023, as a result of its annual impairment testing performed in the fourth quarter, the Company recorded Impairment and other related charges, net of $158 million due to the goodwill impairment recognized for the traffic solutions reporting unit and $2 million to reduce the carrying value of certain indefinite-lived trademarks.

During 2022, the Company recorded Impairment and other related charges, net of $227 million associated with the wind down of the Company’s operations in Russia. The Company also recorded impairment charges of $14 million related to the sale of certain small, non-strategic businesses and $4 million to reduce the carrying value of certain indefinite-lived trademarks based on the results of the annual impairment test.

Refer to Note 6, “Goodwill and Other Identifiable Intangible Assets and Note 7 ”Impairment and Other Related Charges, Net” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K for additional information.

In March 2023, the Company purchased group annuity contracts that transferred to third-party insurance companies pension benefit obligations for certain of the Company’s retirees in the U.S. who were receiving their monthly retirement benefit payments from the U.S. pension plan. This transaction resulted in a pension settlement charge of $190 million. Refer to Note 14, “Employee Benefit Plans" in Item 8 of this Form 10-K for additional information.

Other charges/(income), net was higher in 2023 compared to the prior year primarily due to an increase in the non-service cost components of pension and other postretirement benefit expense, an increase in environmental remediation costs and foreign currency losses recognized in Argentina related to a central bank adjustment to official foreign currency rates, partially offset by a decrease in net business restructuring expense. Refer to Note 18, “Other Charges/(Income), Net” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K for additional information.

Earnings per diluted share from continuing operations for the year ended December 31, 2023 increased year over year primarily due to increased selling prices, moderating raw material cost inflation and favorable foreign currency translation impact, partially offset by lower sales volumes. Refer to the Regulation G Reconciliations - Results from Operations for additional information.

PPG achieved annual records for net sales, adjusted earnings per diluted share and operating cash flow in 2023. Net sales were $18.2 billion, an increase of 3% over the prior year. Results were supported by the breadth and diversity of the business portfolio, as the company benefited from higher prices in all businesses and favorable foreign currency translation, which offset lower sales volumes. Net sales, excluding the impact of currency, acquisitions, divestitures and the wind down of Russia operations ("organic sales") increased 3% during the year driven by continued strong growth in our aerospace coatings and automotive OEM coatings businesses. On a regional basis, sales volumes were modestly higher in the Asia Pacific and Latin America regions, and the EMEA, Asia Pacific, and Latin America regions all delivered record segment earnings for the year. Earnings per diluted share from continuing operations was $5.35, compared to $4.33 in the prior year. Adjusted earnings per diluted share was $7.67, up 27% compared to $6.05 in 2022. Combined, segment income increased by more than 30%. Aggregate segment margins were 310 basis points higher than the prior year, driven by strong selling price realization and moderating raw material costs, partially offset by higher selling, general and administrative costs and lower sales volumes.

During 2023, there was continued recovery in the end-use markets that were impacted by mobility restrictions in 2020 and 2021, such as automotive OEM and aerospace coatings; however, demand in these markets remains below 2019 levels. Global automotive OEM manufacturers’ production increased by about 9% versus 2022 due to strong underlying demand in all regions. Demand for PPG products was mixed by end-use market and geographic region. In the U.S. and Canada, demand was strong for aerospace coatings and protective and marine coatings but declined for most other businesses. In Latin America, demand was solid throughout the year with steady demand for architectural products and growth in automotive OEM products, protective and marine coatings and automotive refinish coatings. The PPG Comex business made strong contributions, expanding the number of concessionaire locations during 2023 to nearly 5,200 locations. Demand was soft in Europe with the largest impact on the architectural coatings business. In Asia, demand was mixed, as activity in China was impacted by pandemic-related restrictions and associated disruptions in the first quarter of 2023,

while demand conditions in the rest of Asia were more stable. Raw material costs declined for most of the year, but still finished the fourth quarter above fourth quarter 2019 levels. Raw material costs continue to moderate and are anticipated to ease further in the beginning of 2024. Some other key costs are expected to increase in 2024, including logistics, employee wage and benefit costs and energy costs.

We expect softening global economic activity in 2024 that will likely be uneven by region and end use. In 2024, we expect an increase in volumes driven by demand growth in China, India and Mexico, industry growth in aerospace, and economic stabilization in Europe. We expect global demand for architectural coatings to remain subdued and global industrial production to persist at lower absolute levels. Demand for protective coatings is expected to be strong and growth in the traffic solutions business should be aided in 2024 as infrastructure spending gains momentum. In general, most end-use markets do not have significant excess inventories, and any demand improvement should lead to a faster ramp-up of sales volumes.

During the year, PPG successfully executed on various strategic initiatives to strengthen the company, including key actions to position PPG for higher organic growth. The Company also continued its ongoing portfolio review leading to the divestitures of both our European and Australian traffic solutions businesses and the recently announced strategic alternatives review of the silicas products business.

We approved business restructuring actions to reduce costs and improve the profitability of our overall business portfolio during 2023, as well as made significant progress on the global restructuring programs that were announced in 2021 and 2022. Total restructuring savings, including the impact of acquisition synergies, was approximately $60 million in 2023. Total restructuring savings are expected to be approximately $35 million in 2024. We expect cash outlays related to restructuring actions of $80 million to $90 million in 2024. We will continue to monitor and aggressively manage the Company’s cost structure to ensure alignment with the overall demand environment.

Raw materials are our most significant input cost. PPG experiences fluctuating energy and raw material costs driven by various factors, including changes in supplier feedstock costs and inventories, global industry activity levels, foreign currency exchange rates, and global supply and demand factors.

In 2023, supply chain and pandemic-related disruptions experienced from 2020 through 2022 have eased, resulting in ample supply of commodity-related raw materials in all regions. For 2023 versus 2022, raw material costs moderated, resulting in a favorable impact to our operating costs. We expect manufacturing efficiencies to improve as the year progresses in 2024. While raw material costs declined during the current year, the Company continues to incur wage inflation, and anticipates further wage inflation impacts in 2024.

We achieved selling price improvement across all businesses in 2023, reflecting the Company’s efforts to offset various inflationary pressures. The Company will carefully monitor all costs during 2024 and assess the need for additional selling price increases.

In 2023, foreign currency rates were volatile, with the U.S. dollar strengthening against certain currencies and weakening against other currencies in the countries within the regions where PPG operates, resulting in a net favorable impact to net income of $25 million. Notably and separately, in December 2023, the central bank of Argentina adjusted the official foreign currency exchange rate for the Argentine peso, significantly devaluing the currency relative to the United States dollar, resulting in recognition of foreign currency losses of $20 million. We expect that foreign currency rates will continue to be volatile. However, the Company generally purchases raw materials, incurs manufacturing costs and sells finished goods in the same currency, so we typically incur only modest foreign currency transaction-related impacts.

The 2024 effective tax rate from continuing operations is expected to be in the range of 23% to 24%, varying by quarter. This range is the Company’s best estimate and represents an increase compared to the 2023 adjusted effective tax rate driven by higher rates in certain countries, including the impact of recent global minimum tax standards, and the geographic mix of earnings.

Over the past five years, the Company used over $800 million of cash to repurchase approximately six million shares of PPG stock, including using $86 million to repurchase shares of PPG stock during 2023. The Company ended the year with approximately $1 billion remaining under its current share repurchase authorization. During 2023, the Company deployed $109 million for acquisitions, $549 million for capital expenditures and $598 million for dividends. In 2023, PPG marked the 52nd annual per share dividend increase and the 124th successive year of annual dividend payments.

PPG ended 2023 with approximately $1.6 billion in cash and short-term investments. The Company expects strong cash generation in 2024.

PPG believes investors’ understanding of the Company’s performance is enhanced by the disclosure of net income from continuing operations, earnings per diluted share from continuing operations, PPG’s effective tax rate and segment income adjusted for certain items. PPG’s management considers this information useful in providing insight into the Company’s ongoing performance because it excludes the impact of items that cannot reasonably be expected to recur on a quarterly basis or that are not attributable to our primary operations. Net income from continuing operations, earnings per diluted share from continuing operations, the effective tax rate and segment income adjusted for these items are not recognized financial measures determined in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”) and should not be considered a substitute for net income from continuing operations, earnings per diluted share from continuing operations, the effective tax rate, segment income or other financial measures as computed in accordance with U.S. GAAP. In addition, adjusted net income, adjusted earnings per diluted share and the adjusted effective tax rate may not be comparable to similarly titled measures as reported by other companies.

Income before income taxes from continuing operations is reconciled to adjusted income before income taxes from continuing operations, the effective tax rate from continuing operations is reconciled to the adjusted effective tax rate from continuing operations and net income from continuing operations (attributable to PPG) and earnings per share – assuming dilution (attributable to PPG) are reconciled to adjusted net income from continuing operations (attributable to PPG) and adjusted earnings per share – assuming dilution below.

and other costs to effect divestitures and other portfolio optimization exit actions. These costs are included in Selling, general and administrative expense in the consolidated statement of income.

Performance of Reportable Business Segments

Performance Coatings

In 2023, all businesses within the Performance Coatings reportable business segment achieved higher selling prices, which helped to offset lower sales volumes due to soft demand conditions in Europe.

Architectural coatings – EMEA organic sales were flat year over year, with higher selling prices offset by lower sales volumes. Regional demand remains uneven by country, and positive sales trends occurred in some countries, including the United Kingdom, Poland and the Netherlands.

Architectural coatings – Americas and Asia Pacific organic sales increased a low single-digit percentage during the year primarily due to selling price increases. Sales in the U.S. and Canada were unfavorably impacted by soft do-it-yourself (“DIY”) demand. In Mexico, architectural coatings organic sales increased compared to the prior year, as concessionaire network demand continued to be strong throughout 2023 and further selling price increases were implemented.

Automotive refinish coatings organic sales increased a low single-digit percentage year over year. Price gains in all regions and sales volume growth in the Latin America and Asia Pacific regions were partially offset by lower sales volumes in all other regions. In the U.S., body shop activity remains solid, with sales volumes impacted mostly due to shifting order patterns from certain U.S. distribution customers. In Europe, sales volumes were below 2022 levels but began to turn positive in the second half of the year. In China, demand for PPG refinish products continues to recover.

Aerospace coatings organic sales were higher by 20% driven by increases in both price and volume. This strong organic sales growth was achieved despite global air travel remaining below pre-pandemic levels. Demand remained strong in all major product categories throughout the year.

Protective and marine coatings organic sales increased by a mid-single-digit percentage driven by solid selling price realization and higher sales volumes.

Traffic solutions organic sales decreased by a mid-single-digit percentage year over year, with sales volume declines in all regions. In the U.S., the Company continues to prioritize higher margin business.

In the first quarter 2024, demand for aerospace coatings, protective and marine coatings and products sold in Mexico is expected to remain robust. Demand conditions in the Europe region, the Asia Pacific region and for DIY architectural coatings in the U.S are anticipated to remain at lower levels. Aggregate organic sales for the Performance Coatings segment are anticipated to increase by a low single-digit percentage compared to the first quarter 2023. The Company will continue to focus on executing various existing cost-savings initiatives.

Industrial Coatings

In 2023, all businesses within the Industrial Coatings reportable business segment achieved higher selling prices, which helped to offset a decrease in sales volumes driven by lower global industrial production.

Automotive OEM coatings organic sales increased by a high single-digit percentage year over year driven by higher selling prices and strong sales volume growth in most regions. Sales volume growth was led by the EMEA and Asia Pacific regions, where retail sales and industry build rates are beginning to return to pre-pandemic levels.

For the industrial coatings business, organic sales decreased by a mid-single-digit percentage year over year as higher selling prices were more than offset by lower sales volumes in all regions due to softening global industrial demand.

Packaging coatings organic sales decreased by a mid-single-digit percentage year over year due to lower sales volume in all regions driven by broad demand weakness. These sales volume decreases were partially offset by higher selling prices in most regions.

Specialty coatings and materials organic sales decreased by a mid-single-digit percentage primarily due to lower sales volumes, partially offset by higher selling prices.

Segment income increased $323 million year over year primarily due to higher selling prices and moderating raw material costs, partially offset by wage and other cost of sales inflation and lower sales volumes.

In the first quarter 2024, global industrial production is expected to remain at lower levels. Aggregate organic sales are anticipated to decrease by a low single-digit percentage compared to the first quarter 2023. Automotive industry build rates are expected to be flat to slightly lower in most regions, except in the Asia Pacific region where solid growth is anticipated. Additionally, sales volumes in the packaging coatings business are expected to increase compared to the prior-year first quarter. In the fourth quarter, the pricing gains negotiated in 2022 reached their anniversary, and price decreases are anticipated in 2024 due to index pricing with certain customers within the segment and reflecting the elimination of certain energy-based surcharges in Europe from early 2023. The Company will continue to focus on executing against various existing cost-savings initiatives.

PPG is involved in a number of lawsuits and claims, both actual and potential, including some that it has asserted against others, in which substantial monetary damages are sought. Refer to Item 3. “Legal Proceedings” and Note 15, “Commitments and Contingent Liabilities” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K for a description of certain of these lawsuits.

As discussed in Item 3 and Note 15, although the result of any future litigation of such lawsuits and claims is inherently unpredictable, management believes that, in the aggregate, the outcome of all lawsuits and claims involving PPG, including asbestos-related claims, will not have a material effect on PPG’s consolidated financial position or liquidity; however, any such outcome may be material to the results of operations of any particular period in which costs, if any, are recognized.

As also discussed in Note 15, PPG has significant reserves for environmental contingencies. Refer to the Environmental Matters section of Note 15 for details of these reserves. It is PPG’s policy to accrue expenses for contingencies when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. Reserves for environmental contingencies are exclusive of claims against third parties and are generally not discounted. In management’s opinion, the Company operates in an environmentally sound manner and the outcome of the Company’s environmental contingencies will not have a material effect on PPG’s financial position or liquidity; however, any such outcome may be material to the results of operations of any particular period in which costs, if any, are recognized. Management anticipates that the resolution of the Company’s environmental contingencies will occur over an extended period of time.

Note 1, “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K describes the Company’s recently adopted accounting pronouncements.

Note 1, “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K describes accounting pronouncements that have been promulgated prior to December 31, 2023 but are not effective until a future date.

During the past two years, PPG had sufficient financial resources to meet its operating requirements, to fund our capital spending, including acquisitions, share repurchases and pension plans, and to pay increasing dividends to shareholders.

The $1,448 million increase in Cash from operating activities - continuing operations was primarily due to higher net income driven by higher selling prices and moderating raw material costs and favorable changes in working capital compared to the prior year.

Operating working capital is a subset of total working capital and represents (1) receivables from customers, net of allowance for doubtful accounts, (2) inventories, and (3) trade liabilities. Refer to Note 3, “Working Capital Detail” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K for further information related to the components of the Company’s operating working capital. We believe operating working capital represents the key components of working capital under the operating control of our businesses.

A key metric we use to measure our working capital management is operating working capital as a percentage of sales (fourth quarter sales annualized). 

We expect cash outlays for environmental remediation activities in 2024 to be between $40 million and $60 million.

The $95 million increase in cash used for investing activities was primarily due to higher capital expenditures and lower proceeds from asset sales.

During 2024, capital expenditures, which are expected to be approximately $600 million, will support future organic growth opportunities. The Company will continue to deploy cash focused on shareholder value creation, with a preference for business acquisitions, coupled with prudent debt reduction to enhance financial flexibility.

The $1,141 million increase in cash used for financing activities was primarily due to repayments of long-term debt and lower proceeds from the issuance of debt, partially offset by the absence of net payments on commercial paper.

The Company has approximately $1.0 billion remaining under the current authorization from the Board of Directors, which was approved in December 2017. The current authorized repurchase program has no expiration date.

PPG has paid uninterrupted annual dividends since 1899, and 2023 marked the 52nd successive year of increased annual per-share dividend payments to shareholders. The Company raised its per-share quarterly dividend by approximately 5% to $0.65 per share in July 2023.

The Company’s commercial paper borrowings are classified as long-term debt based on PPG’s intent and ability to refinance these borrowings on a long-term basis. Net payments on commercial paper were zero and $440 million for the years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.

In April 2023, PPG entered into a €500 million term loan credit agreement (the "Term Loan"). The Term Loan provides the Company with the ability to increase the size of the loan by an amount not to exceed €250 million. The Term Loan contains covenants that are consistent with those in the Credit Agreement discussed below and that are usual and customary restrictive covenants for facilities of its type, which include, with specified exceptions, limitations on the Company’s ability to create liens or other encumbrances, to enter into sale and leaseback transactions and to enter into consolidations, mergers or transfers of all or substantially all of its assets. The Term Loan terminates and all amounts outstanding are payable in April 2026. In April 2023, PPG borrowed €500 million under the Term Loan. In December 2023, PPG obtained lender commitments sufficient to increase the size of the Term Loan by €250 million. In January 2024, PPG borrowed the additional €250 million.

In February 2021, PPG entered into a $2.0 billion term loan credit agreement (the "Term Loan Credit Agreement") to finance the Company’s acquisition of Tikkurila, and to pay fees, costs and expenses related thereto. The Term Loan Credit Agreement provided the Company with the ability to borrow up to an aggregate principal amount of $2.0 billion on an unsecured basis. In addition to the amounts borrowed to finance the acquisition of Tikkurila, the Term Loan Credit Agreement allowed the Company to make up to eleven additional borrowings prior to December 31, 2021, to be used for working capital and general corporate purposes. The Term Loan Credit Agreement contains covenants that are consistent with those in the Credit Agreement discussed below and that are usual and customary restrictive covenants for facilities of its type, which include, with specified exceptions, limitations on the Company’s ability to create liens or other encumbrances, to enter into sale and leaseback transactions and to enter into consolidations, mergers or transfers of all or substantially all of its assets. The Term Loan Credit Agreement matures and all outstanding borrowings are due and payable on the third anniversary of the date of the initial borrowing under the Agreement. In June 2021, PPG borrowed $700 million under the Term Loan Credit Agreement to finance the Company’s acquisition of Tikkurila, and to pay fees, costs and expenses related thereto. In December 2021, PPG borrowed an additional $700 million under the Term Loan Credit Agreement. In 2022 and 2023, PPG repaid $300 million and $1.1 billion, respectively, of the Term Loan Credit Agreement using cash on hand. In March 2023, PPG amended the Term Loan Credit Agreement to replace the LIBOR-based reference interest rate option with a reference interest rate option based upon Term Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR"). The other terms of the Term Loan Credit Agreement remain unchanged. The Term Loan Credit Agreement was fully repaid as of December 31, 2023. Borrowings of $1.1 billion were outstanding under the Term Loan Credit Agreement as of December 31, 2022.

In March 2023, PPG amended its five-year credit agreement (the “Credit Agreement”) dated as of August 30, 2019. The amendments to the Credit Agreement replace the LIBOR-based reference interest rate option with a reference interest rate option based upon Term SOFR. The other terms of the Credit Agreement remained unchanged. In July 2023, PPG amended and restated the Credit Agreement, extending the term through July 27, 2028. The amended and restated Credit Agreement provides for a $2.3 billion unsecured revolving credit facility. The Company has the ability to increase the size of the Credit Agreement by up to an additional $750 million, subject to the receipt of lender commitments and other conditions precedent. The Company has the right, subject to certain conditions set forth in the Credit Agreement, to designate certain subsidiaries of the Company as borrowers under the Credit Agreement. In connection with any such designation, the Company is required to guarantee the obligations of any such subsidiaries under the Credit Agreement. There were no amounts outstanding under the Credit Agreement as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022.

The Term Loan and the Credit Agreement require the Company to maintain a ratio of Total Indebtedness to Total Capitalization, as defined in the Term Loan and the Credit Agreement, of 60% or less; provided, that for any fiscal quarter in which the Company has made an acquisition for consideration in excess of $1 billion and for the next five fiscal quarters thereafter, the ratio of Total Indebtedness to Total Capitalization may not exceed 65% at any time. As of December 31, 2023, Total Indebtedness to Total Capitalization as defined under the Credit Agreement and the Term Loan was 42%.

In addition to the amounts available under lines of credit, the Company maintains access to the capital markets and may issue debt or equity securities from time to time, which may provide an additional source of liquidity. 

Refer to Note 10, “Borrowings and Lines of Credit” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K for information regarding notes entered into and repaid as well as details regarding the use and availability of committed and uncommitted lines of credit, letters of credit and debt covenants.

We continue to believe that our cash on hand and short-term investments, cash from operations and the Company’s access to capital markets will continue to be sufficient to fund our operating activities, capital spending, acquisitions, dividend payments, debt service, share repurchases, contributions to pension plans, and PPG’s significant cash requirements. The Company’s significant cash requirements include the following contractual obligations and commitments.

The Company’s off-balance sheet arrangements include unconditional purchase commitments disclosed in the “Liquidity and Capital Resources” section in the cash requirements table as well as letters of credit as discussed in Note 10, “Borrowings and Lines of Credit” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K.

Other liquidity matters

Management has evaluated the accounting policies used in the preparation of the financial statements and related notes presented in Item 8 of this Form 10-K and believes those policies to be reasonable and appropriate. We believe that the most critical accounting estimates made in the preparation of our financial statements are those related to accounting for contingencies, under which we accrue a loss when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount can be reasonably estimated, and to accounting for pensions, other postretirement benefits, business combinations, goodwill and other identifiable intangible assets with indefinite lives because of the importance of management judgment in making the estimates necessary to apply these policies.

Contingencies, by their nature, relate to uncertainties that require management to exercise judgment both in assessing the likelihood that a liability has been incurred as well as in estimating the amount of potential loss. The most important contingencies impacting our financial statements are those related to environmental remediation, to pending, impending or overtly threatened litigation against the Company and to the resolution of matters related to open tax years. For more information on these matters, see Note 15, “Commitments and Contingent Liabilities” and Note 13, “Income Taxes” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K.

Defined Benefit Pension and Other Postretirement Benefit Plans

Accounting for pensions and other postretirement benefits involves estimating the cost of benefits to be provided well into the future and attributing that cost over the time period each employee works. To accomplish this, we make extensive use of assumptions about inflation, investment returns, mortality, turnover, medical costs and discount rates. The Company has established a process by which management reviews and selects these assumptions annually. Refer to Note 14, “Employee Benefit Plans” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K for information on these plans and the assumptions used.

Business Combinations

The Company uses the acquisition method of accounting to allocate costs of acquired businesses to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their estimated fair values at the dates of acquisition. The excess costs of acquired businesses over the fair values of the assets acquired and liabilities assumed is recognized as goodwill. The valuations of the acquired assets and liabilities impacts the determination of future operating results. In addition to using management estimates and negotiated amounts, the Company uses a variety of information sources to determine the estimated fair values of acquired assets and liabilities including: third-party appraisals for the estimated value and lives of identifiable intangible assets and property, plant and equipment; third-party actuaries for the estimated obligations of defined benefit pension plans and similar benefit obligations; and legal counsel or other experts to assess the obligations associated with legal, environmental and other contingent liabilities.

Goodwill and Intangible Assets

The Company tests indefinite-lived intangible assets and goodwill for impairment by either performing a qualitative evaluation or a quantitative test at least annually, or more frequently if an indication of impairment arises. The qualitative evaluation is an assessment of factors to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit or asset is less than its carrying amount. In the quantitative test, fair values are estimated using a discounted cash flow model. Key assumptions and estimates used in the discounted cash flow model include projected future revenues, discount rates, operating cash flows, capital expenditures and tax rates. For more information on these matters, see Note 1, “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K.

We believe that the amounts recorded in the financial statements in Item 8 of this Form 10-K related to these contingencies, pensions, other postretirement benefits, business combinations, goodwill and other identifiable intangible assets with indefinite lives are based on the best estimates and judgments of the appropriate PPG management, although actual outcomes could differ from our estimates.

Comparing average exchange rates during 2023 to those of 2022, the U.S. dollar weakened against the currencies of certain countries where PPG operates, including the Mexican peso and the euro, partially offset by strengthening against the Chinese yuan and Argentine peso. This had a favorable impact of approximately $25 million on full year 2023 Income before income taxes from the translation of this foreign income into U.S. dollars.

The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a safe harbor for forward-looking statements made by or on behalf of the Company. Management’s Discussion and Analysis and other sections of this Annual Report contain forward-looking statements that reflect the Company’s current views with respect to future events and financial performance. You can identify forward-looking statements by the fact that they do not relate strictly to current or historic facts. Forward-looking statements are identified by the use of the words “aim,” “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “estimate,” “project,” “outlook,” “forecast” and other expressions that indicate future events and trends. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which such statement is made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. You are advised, however, to consult any further disclosures we make on related subjects in our reports to the SEC. Also, note the following cautionary statements.

Many factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company’s forward-looking statements. Such factors include statements related to the effects on our business of COVID-19, global economic conditions, geopolitical issues, increasing price and product competition by our competitors, fluctuations in cost and availability of raw materials, energy, labor and logistics, the ability to achieve selling price increases, the ability to recover margins, customer inventory levels,

PPG inventory levels, our ability to maintain favorable supplier relationships and arrangements, the timing of and the realization of anticipated cost savings from restructuring initiatives, the ability to identify additional cost savings opportunities, the timing and expected benefits of our acquisitions, difficulties in integrating acquired businesses and achieving expected synergies therefrom, the amount of future share repurchases, economic and political conditions in the markets we serve, the ability to penetrate existing, developing and emerging foreign and domestic markets, foreign exchange rates and fluctuations in such rates, fluctuations in tax rates, the impact of future legislation, the impact of environmental regulations, unexpected business disruptions, the unpredictability of existing and possible future litigation, including asbestos litigation, and government investigations. However, it is not possible to predict or identify all such factors.

Consequently, while the list of factors presented here and in Item 1A is considered representative, no such list should be considered to be a complete statement of all potential risks and uncertainties. Unlisted factors may present significant additional obstacles to the realization of forward-looking statements.

Consequences of material differences in the results compared with those anticipated in the forward-looking statements could include, among other things, lower sales or income, business disruption, operational problems, financial loss, legal liability to third parties, other factors set forth in Item 1A of this Form 10-K and similar risks, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial condition, results of operations or liquidity. PPG undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as otherwise required by applicable law.

PPG is exposed to market risks related to changes in foreign currency exchange rates and interest rates. The Company may enter into derivative financial instrument transactions in order to manage or reduce these market risks. A detailed description of these exposures and the Company’s risk management policies are provided in Note 11, “Financial Instruments, Hedging Activities and Fair Value Measurements” in Item 8 of this Form 10-K.

The following disclosures summarize PPG’s exposure to market risks and information regarding the use of and fair value of derivatives employed to manage its exposure to such risks. Quantitative sensitivity analyses have been provided to reflect how reasonably possible, unfavorable changes in market rates could impact PPG’s consolidated results of operations, cash flows and financial position.

Foreign Currency Risk

As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, PPG had non-U.S. dollar denominated debt outstanding of $3.3 billion and $2.6 billion, respectively. A weakening of the U.S. dollar by 10% against European currencies and by 20% against Asian and South American currencies would have resulted in unrealized translation losses of $363 million and $293 million as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Interest Rate Risk

The Company manages its interest rate risk by balancing its exposure to fixed and variable rates while attempting to minimize its interest costs. PPG has interest rate swaps which converted $375 million and $525 million of fixed rate debt to variable rate debt as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. The fair values of these contracts were liabilities of $14 million and $20 million as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. An increase in variable interest rates of 10% would have lowered the fair values of these swaps and increased interest expense by $5 million and $7 million for the periods ended December 31, 2023 and 2022. Considering the debt balance outstanding as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, a 10% increase in interest rates in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Europe and a 20% increase in interest rates in Asia and South America would have increased annual interest expense associated with PPG's variable rate debt obligations by $2 million and by $4 million, respectively. Further, a 10% reduction in interest rates would have increased the fair value of the Company’s fixed rate debt by approximately $96 million and $116 million as of

December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively; however, such changes would not have had an effect on PPG’s annual Income before income taxes or cash flows.

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheet of PPG Industries, Inc. and its subsidiaries (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, and the related consolidated statements of income, of comprehensive income, of shareholders' equity and of cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2023, including the related notes and schedule of valuation and qualifying accounts for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2023 appearing under Item 15(a)(2) (collectively referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). We also have audited the Company's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2023, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).

In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2023 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. Also in our opinion, the Company maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2023, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the COSO.

The Company's management is responsible for these consolidated financial statements, for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting, and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, included in the accompanying Management Report on Establishing and Maintaining Adequate Internal Control Over Financial Reporting. Our responsibility is to express opinions on the Company’s consolidated financial statements and on the Company's internal control over financial reporting based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audits to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud, and whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects.

Our audits of the consolidated financial statements included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the consolidated financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the consolidated financial statements. Our audit of internal control over financial reporting included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, and testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk. Our audits also included performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinions.

A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (i) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (ii) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (iii) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become

inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

The critical audit matter communicated below is a matter arising from the current period audit of the consolidated financial statements that was communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that (i) relates to accounts or disclosures that are material to the consolidated financial statements and (ii) involved our especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. The communication of critical audit matters does not alter in any way our opinion on the consolidated financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the critical audit matter below, providing a separate opinion on the critical audit matter or on the accounts or disclosures to which it relates.

As described in Notes 1 and 6 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company’s consolidated goodwill balance was $6,200 million as of December 31, 2023, of which $391 million relates to the traffic solutions reporting unit. Management tests goodwill for impairment by either performing a qualitative evaluation or a quantitative test, at least annually, or more frequently if an indication of impairment exists. Management’s quantitative goodwill impairment testing, if deemed necessary, is performed during the fourth quarter of each year by comparing the estimated fair value of an associated reporting unit as of September 30 to its carrying value. Based on the annual goodwill impairment test performed in the fourth quarter of 2023, management determined that the estimated fair value of the traffic solutions reporting unit was less than its carrying value, resulting in recognition of a goodwill impairment charge of $158 million in impairment and other related charges, net. The fair value of the traffic solutions reporting unit was estimated by management using a discounted cash flow model. Key assumptions and estimates used in the discounted cash flow model included projected future revenues, a discount rate, operating cash flows, capital expenditures, and a tax rate.

The principal considerations for our determination that performing procedures relating to the quantitative goodwill impairment test of the traffic solutions reporting unit is a critical audit matter are (i) the significant judgment by management when developing the fair value estimate of the traffic solutions reporting unit; (ii) a high degree of auditor judgment, subjectivity, and effort in performing procedures and evaluating management’s significant assumptions related to the projected future revenues and the discount rate; and (iii) the audit effort involved the use of professionals with specialized skill and knowledge.

Addressing the matter involved performing procedures and evaluating audit evidence in connection with forming our overall opinion on the consolidated financial statements. These procedures included testing the effectiveness of controls relating to management’s quantitative goodwill impairment test, including controls over the valuation of the traffic solutions reporting unit. These procedures also included, among others (i) testing management’s process for developing the fair value estimate of the traffic solutions reporting unit; (ii) evaluating the appropriateness of the discounted cash flow model used by management; (iii) testing the completeness and accuracy of underlying data used in the discounted cash flow model; and (iv) evaluating the reasonableness of management’s significant assumptions related to the projected future revenues and the discount rate. Evaluating management’s assumption related to the projected future revenues involved evaluating whether the assumption used by management was reasonable considering (i) the current and past performance of the traffic solutions reporting unit; (ii) the consistency with external market and industry data; and (iii) whether the assumption was consistent with evidence obtained in other areas of the audit. Professionals with specialized skill and knowledge were used to assist in the evaluation of (i) the appropriateness of the discounted cash flow model and (ii) the reasonableness of the discount rate assumption.

/s/ PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

February 15, 2024

We are responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, has issued their report, included on pages 31-32 of this Form 10-K, regarding the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.

The accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements are an integral part of these consolidated statements.

The accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements are an integral part of this consolidated statement.

The accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements are an integral part of this consolidated statement.

The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of PPG Industries, Inc. (“PPG” or the “Company”) and all subsidiaries, both U.S. and non-U.S., that it controls. PPG owns more than 50% of the voting stock of most of the subsidiaries that it controls. For those consolidated subsidiaries in which the Company’s ownership is less than 100%, the outside shareholders’ interests are shown as noncontrolling interests. Investments in companies in which PPG owns 20% to 50% of the voting stock and has the ability to exercise significant influence over operating and financial policies of the investee are accounted for using the equity method of accounting. As a result, PPG’s share of income or losses from such equity affiliates is included in the consolidated statement of income and PPG’s share of these companies’ shareholders’ equity is included in Investments on the consolidated balance sheet. Transactions between PPG and its subsidiaries are eliminated in consolidation.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, as well as the reported amounts of income and expenses during the reporting period. Such estimates also include the fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed resulting from the allocation of the purchase price related to business combinations consummated. Actual outcomes could differ from those estimates.

Revenue is recognized as performance obligations with the customer are satisfied, at an amount that is determined to be collectible. For the sale of products, this generally occurs at the point in time when control of the Company’s products transfers to the customer based on the agreed upon shipping terms.

Amounts billed to customers for shipping and handling are reported in Net sales in the consolidated statement of income. Shipping and handling costs incurred by the Company for the delivery of goods to customers are included in Cost of sales, exclusive of depreciation and amortization in the consolidated statement of income.

Amounts presented in Selling, general and administrative in the consolidated statement of income are comprised of selling, customer service, distribution and advertising costs, as well as the costs of providing corporate-wide functional support in areas such as finance, law, human resources and planning. Distribution costs pertain to the movement and storage of finished goods inventory at company-owned and leased warehouses and other distribution facilities.

Advertising costs are charged to expense as incurred and totaled $285 million, $252 million and $243 million in 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

Research and development costs, which consist primarily of employee-related costs, are charged to expense as incurred.

Legal costs, which primarily include costs associated with acquisition and divestiture transactions, general litigation, environmental regulation compliance, patent and trademark protection and other general corporate purposes, are charged to expense as incurred.

Income taxes are accounted for under the asset and liability method. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to operating losses and tax credit carryforwards as well as differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in Income tax expense in the consolidated statement of income in the period that includes the enactment date.

A valuation allowance is provided against deferred tax assets in situations where PPG determines it is more likely than not such assets will not ultimately be realized.

PPG does not recognize a tax benefit unless it concludes that it is more likely than not that the benefit will be sustained on audit by the taxing authority based solely on the technical merits of the associated tax position. If the recognition threshold is met, PPG recognizes a tax benefit measured at the largest amount of the tax benefit that, in PPG’s judgment, is greater than 50 percent likely to be realized. PPG records interest and penalties related to uncertain tax positions in Income tax expense in the consolidated statement of income.

The functional currency of most significant non-U.S. operations is their local currency. Assets and liabilities of those operations are translated into U.S. dollars using year-end exchange rates; income and expenses are translated using the average exchange rates for the reporting period. Unrealized foreign currency translation gains and losses are deferred in Accumulated other comprehensive loss on the consolidated balance sheet.

Cash equivalents are highly liquid investments (valued at cost, which approximates fair value) acquired with an original maturity of three months or less.

Short-term investments are highly liquid, high credit quality investments (valued at cost plus accrued interest) that have stated maturities of greater than three months to less than one year. The purchases and sales of these investments are classified as Investing activities in the consolidated statement of cash flows.

The Company’s investment in marketable equity securities is recorded at fair market value and reported as Other current assets and Investments on the consolidated balance sheet with changes in fair market value recorded in income.

Inventories are stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value. Most U.S. inventories are stated at cost, using the last-in, first-out (“LIFO”) method of accounting, which does not exceed net realizable value. All other inventories are stated at cost, using the first-in, first-out (“FIFO”) method of accounting, which does not exceed net realizable value. PPG determines cost using either average or standard factory costs, which approximate actual costs, excluding certain fixed costs such as depreciation and property taxes. Refer to Note 3, “Working Capital Detail” for further information concerning the Company’s inventories.

The Company recognizes all derivative financial instruments (a “derivative”) as either assets or liabilities at fair value on the consolidated balance sheet. The accounting for changes in the fair value of a derivative depends on the use of the instrument.

For derivative instruments that are designated and qualify as cash flow hedges, the unrealized gains or losses on the derivatives are recorded in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income. Amounts in Accumulated other comprehensive loss on the consolidated balance sheet are reclassified into Income before income taxes in the consolidated statement of income in the same period or periods during which the hedged transactions are recorded in Income before income taxes in the consolidated statement of income.

For derivative instruments that are designated and qualify as fair value hedges, the change in the fair value of the derivatives are reported in Income before income taxes in the consolidated statement of income, offsetting the gain or loss recognized for the change in fair value of the asset, liability, or firm commitment that is being hedged.

For derivatives, debt or other financial instruments that are designated and qualify as net investment hedges, the gains or losses associated with the financial instruments are reported as translation gains or losses in Accumulated other comprehensive loss on the consolidated balance sheet. Gains and losses in Accumulated other comprehensive loss related to hedges of the Company’s net investments in foreign operations are reclassified out of Accumulated other comprehensive loss and recognized in Income before income taxes in the consolidated statement of income upon a substantial liquidation, sale or partial sale of such investments or upon impairment of all or a portion of such investments. The cash flow impact of these instruments is classified as Investing activities in the consolidated statement of cash flows.

Changes in the fair value of derivative instruments not designated as hedges for hedge accounting purposes are recognized in Income before income taxes in the consolidated statement of income in the period of change.

Property, plant and equipment is recorded at cost. Depreciation is computed on a straight-line method based on the estimated useful lives of related assets. Accelerated depreciation expense is recorded when facilities or equipment are subject to abnormal economic conditions, restructuring actions or obsolescence.

The cost of significant improvements that add to productive capacity or extend the lives of properties are capitalized. Costs for repairs and maintenance are charged to expense as incurred. When a capitalized asset is retired or otherwise disposed of, the original cost and related accumulated depreciation balance are removed from the accounts and any related gain or loss is recorded in Income before income taxes in the consolidated statement of income. The amortization cost of finance lease assets is recorded in Depreciation expense in the consolidated statement of income. Property and other long-lived assets are reviewed for impairment whenever events or circumstances indicate that their carrying amounts may not be recoverable. Refer to Note 4, “Property, Plant and Equipment” for further details.

Goodwill represents the excess of the cost over the fair value of acquired identifiable tangible and intangible assets less liabilities assumed from acquired businesses. Identifiable intangible assets acquired in business combinations are recorded based upon their fair value at the date of acquisition.

PPG is a multinational manufacturer with 10 operating segments (which the Company refers to as “strategic business units”) that are organized based on the Company’s major products lines. These operating segments are also the Company’s reporting units for purposes of testing goodwill for impairment, which is tested at least annually in connection with PPG’s strategic planning process or more frequently if an indication of impairment exists. The Company tests goodwill for impairment by either performing a qualitative evaluation or a quantitative test. The qualitative evaluation is an assessment of factors, including reporting unit specific operating results as well as industry, market and general economic conditions, to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, including goodwill. The Company may elect to bypass this qualitative assessment for some or all of its reporting units and perform a quantitative test. Quantitative goodwill impairment testing, if deemed necessary, is performed during the fourth quarter of each year by comparing the estimated fair value of an associated reporting unit as of September 30 to its carrying value. Fair value is estimated using a discounted cash flow model. Key assumptions and estimates used in the discounted cash flow model include projected future revenues, discount rates, operating cash flows, capital expenditures and tax rates. In 2023, the Company determined that the estimated fair value of the traffic solutions reporting unit was less than its carrying value, resulting in recognition of a goodwill impairment charge of $158 million in Impairment and other related charges, net in the accompanying consolidated statement of income. Refer to Note 6, “Goodwill and Other Identifiable Intangible Assets” for further details.

The Company has determined that certain acquired trademarks have indefinite useful lives. The Company tests the carrying value of these trademarks for impairment at least annually, or as needed whenever events and circumstances indicate that their carrying amount may not be recoverable. In 2022, due to the adverse economic impacts of Russian military forces invading Ukraine, the Company identified indicators that the carrying value of an indefinite-lived intangible asset and certain definite-lived intangible assets associated with the Company's operations in Russia may not be recoverable, and the carrying value of those assets was assessed for impairment. As a result of this assessment, the Company recorded impairment charges of $124 million related to the indefinite-lived intangible asset and $23 million related to definite-lived intangible assets in the consolidated statement of income for the year ended December 31, 2022. Refer to Note 7, "Impairment and Other Related Charges, Net" for additional information.

The annual indefinite-lived intangible asset impairment assessment takes place in the fourth quarter of each year either by completing a qualitative assessment or quantitatively by comparing the estimated fair value of each trademark as of September 30 to its carrying value. Fair value is estimated using the relief from royalty method (a discounted cash flow methodology). The qualitative assessment includes consideration of factors, including revenue relative to the asset being assessed, the operating results of the related business and industry, market and general economic conditions, to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of the asset is less than its carrying amount. In 2023, the annual impairment testing review of indefinite-lived intangibles performed as of September 30, 2023 resulted in the Company recognizing an impairment charge of $2 million. Refer to Note 6, “Goodwill and Other Identifiable Intangible Assets” for further details.

Identifiable intangible assets with finite lives are amortized on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives (1 to 30 years) and are reviewed for impairment whenever events or circumstances indicate that their carrying amount may not be recoverable.

All trade receivables are reported on the consolidated balance sheet at the outstanding principal adjusted for any allowance for doubtful accounts and any charge offs. The Company provides an allowance for doubtful accounts to

reduce receivables to their estimated net realizable value when it is probable that a loss will be incurred. Those estimates are based on historical collection experience, current regional economic and market conditions, the aging of accounts receivable, assessments of current creditworthiness of customers, and forward-looking information. Refer to Note 20, “Revenue Recognition” for further details.

The Company determines if a contract is a lease at the inception of the arrangement. The Company reviews all options to extend, terminate, or purchase its right of use assets at the inception of the lease and accounts for these options when they are reasonably certain of being exercised. Certain real estate leases contain lease and non-lease components, which are accounted for separately. For certain equipment leases, lease and non-lease components are accounted for as a single lease component.

Leases with an initial term of 12 months or less are not recorded on the consolidated balance sheet. Lease expense for these leases is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term.

Variable lease expense is based on contractual arrangements with PPG’s lessors determined based on external indices or other relevant market factors. In addition, PPG’s variable lease expense also includes elements of a contract that do not represent a good or service but for which the lessee is responsible for paying.

Nearly all of PPG’s lease contracts do not provide a readily determinable implicit rate. For these contracts, PPG’s estimated incremental borrowing rate is based on information available at the inception of the lease.

The Company accrues for product warranties at the time the associated products are sold based on historical claims experience. The reserve, pretax charges against income and cash outlays for product warranties were not significant to the consolidated financial statements of the Company for any year presented.

An asset retirement obligation represents a legal obligation associated with the retirement of a tangible long-lived asset that is incurred upon the acquisition, construction, development or normal operation of that long-lived asset. PPG recognizes asset retirement obligations in the period in which they are incurred if a reasonable estimate of fair value can be made. The asset retirement obligation is subsequently adjusted for changes in fair value. The associated estimated asset retirement costs are capitalized as part of the carrying amount of the long-lived asset and depreciated over its useful life. PPG’s asset retirement obligations are primarily associated with the retirement or closure of certain assets used in PPG’s manufacturing process. The accrued asset retirement obligation is recorded in Accounts payable and accrued liabilities and Other liabilities on the consolidated balance sheet and was $23 million as of both December 31, 2023 and 2022.

PPG’s only conditional asset retirement obligation relates to the possible future abatement of asbestos contained in certain PPG production facilities. The asbestos in PPG’s production facilities arises from the application of normal and customary building practices in the past when the facilities were constructed. This asbestos is encapsulated in place and, as a result, there is no current legal requirement to abate it. Because there is no requirement to abate, the Company does not have any current plans or an intention to abate and therefore the timing, method and cost of future abatement, if any, are not known. The Company has not recorded an asset retirement obligation associated with asbestos abatement, given the uncertainty concerning the timing of future abatement, if any.

It is PPG’s policy to accrue expenses for environmental contingencies when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. Reserves for environmental contingencies are exclusive of claims against third parties and are generally not discounted.

The Company classifies assets and liabilities as held for sale (a “disposal group”) when management commits to a plan to sell the disposal group, the sale is probable within one year and the disposal group is available for immediate sale in its present condition. The Company considers various factors, particularly whether actions required to complete the plan indicate it is unlikely that significant changes to the plan will be made or the plan will be withdrawn. Assets held for sale are measured at the lower of carrying value or fair value less costs to sell. Any loss resulting from the measurement is recognized in the period the held-for-sale criteria are met. Conversely, gains are not recognized until the date of the sale. When the disposal group is classified as held for sale, depreciation and amortization ceases and the Company tests the assets for impairment.

Certain reclassifications of prior years’ data have been made to conform to the current year presentation. These reclassifications had no impact on our previously reported Net income, cash flows or shareholders’ equity.

Effective January 1, 2023, PPG adopted Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") No. 2022-04, “Liabilities - Supplier Finance Programs." This ASU is intended to enhance the transparency surrounding the use of supplier finance programs. The guidance does not affect the recognition, measurement, or financial statement presentation of obligations covered by supplier finance programs.

In November 2023, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued ASU No. 2023-07 “Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures (Topic 280)”. This ASU updates current reportable segment disclosure requirements to require disclosures of significant reportable segment expenses that are regularly provided to the Chief Operating Decision Maker (“CODM”) and included within each reported measure of a segment's profit or loss. This ASU also requires disclosure of the title and position of the individual identified as the CODM and an explanation of how the CODM uses the reported measures of a segment’s profit or loss in assessing segment performance and deciding how to allocate resources. This ASU will be effective for the annual period ending December 31, 2024. Adoption of this ASU will result in additional disclosure, but will not impact PPG’s consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In December 2023, the FASB issued ASU No. 2023-09 “Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures (Topic 740)”. This ASU updates current income tax disclosure requirements to require disclosures of specific categories of information within the effective tax rate reconciliation, as well as disclosure of income taxes paid disaggregated by jurisdiction. This ASU will be effective for the annual period ending December 31, 2025. Adoption of this ASU will result in additional disclosure, but will not impact PPG’s consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

On June 10, 2021, PPG completed its tender offer for all of the outstanding shares of Tikkurila Oyj ("Tikkurila"). Tikkurila is a leading Nordic producer and distributor of decorative paint and coatings, including an industrial paint business that produces paints and coatings for the wood and metal industries, among others. Immediately prior to the June 10, 2021 acquisition date, PPG owned 9.3% of Tikkurila’s issued and outstanding shares. Immediately following the acquisition date, PPG owned 97.1% of Tikkurila’s issued and outstanding shares. PPG continued to acquire the remaining shares not tendered during the tender offer period through a squeeze out process, ultimately achieving 100% ownership of Tikkurila’s outstanding shares during the fourth quarter of 2021.

The results of this business since the date of acquisition have been reported within two operating segments: the architectural coatings – EMEA business and the industrial coatings business. The architectural coatings – EMEA business is included within the Performance Coatings reportable business segment and the industrial coatings business is included within the Industrial Coatings reportable business segment.